1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to the field of sealing cartons, boxes, or packages and in particular to the field of strapping shipping cartons with secure apparatus such that the straps cannot come loose during shipment and cannot be surreptitiously removed by thieves.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Valuable goods are typically shipped via public or private cargo carriers and are often subject to surreptitious pilferage and theft. The theft usually occurs in unsecured storage and warehouse areas or even in transit while en route to the final destination. The result is loss of the goods which very often is born by the sender or the receiver of the goods and not the carrier or the insurance company because such theft can not be detected until after the receipt and signing off by the recipient. The present invention is intended to overcome this problem.
The method used by the thieves is simply to either slide the straps off the box or to loosen the straps by uncrimping the clip holding the straps, remove the goods and then re-strapping the carton. The more devious thieves replace the dead weight of the removed goods with commonly available objects of equal weight. Once the package is delivered and accepted by the receiver the theft is found, but; then it is too late. The carrier denies liability because he has no way of knowing if the receiver is being truthful. When a number of different carriers are involved, the problem is compounded. There is no way of determining who is at fault. The theft could have occurred by any of the various personnel involved. The denial of liability even extends to the insurance provider. The insurance provider also has no way of determining whether the receiver is being truthful.
One prior art method of sealing the shipping boxes comprises using sealing tape. Removal of the sealing tape, however is relatively easily accomplished and can be done in such a way that detection is almost impossible. Thus, packages secured with sealing tape are very susceptible to theft.
Another prior art method of securing shipped goods, and probably the most common, is the use of metal or reinforced plastic straps. The straps are applied in one direction around the box, made tight by a special tool and then fastened by the use of metal clips. The clips comprise flattened pieces of metal which are bent around the tightened ends of the straps and then crimped in place. One strap may be used or a number of straps may be used. The straps may also be cris-crossed in different directions around the box so that one goes along the length of the box and another goes along the width of the box. However, the straps are individual straps and are not connected to each other. It is therefore possible to slide off one strap, then the other, remove the goods and slide the straps back on. Again the theft is easily accomplished and undetected.
The rough handling packages typically receive in shipping, aids in the undetectability of theft. So too does the fact that shipping cartons are usually made of craft paper or corrugated cardboard. Rough handling during shipment regularly occurs which damages the carton and may cause loosening of the straps. When received at the final destination the receiver almost always assumes that a damaged carton and loose straps were caused by rough handling instead of theft. But upon opening the carton a theft may be discovered.
Tamper evident security tapes and serialized tags have also been used in the never ending attempt to thwart thievery. The tamper evident tapes are subject to shipping damage just as the straps and the cartons, so that a receiver cannot determine if the damage was caused by shipping or thieves. The serialized tags can only be opened by destruction of the tag. But since the tags must be used with straps, it is an easy matter to remove the straps leaving the tag intact and then reapplying new straps. Thus, while tamper evident tapes and serialized tags help prevent theft, their use is easily avoided by clever thieves.
Accordingly, primary objects of the present invention are to provide methods and apparatus for sealing shipping cartons containing valuable goods which makes thievery impossible or nearly impossible but yet allows for easy application of securing straps, provides for greater strength, is convenient to use, and is inexpensive.